European marsh turtle at home. Turtle - an ancient reptile Turtle with a long tail

Many animals live in glass containers: turtles, fish, lizards and crustaceans. Home terrariums usually contain a terrestrial species of turtles from which freshwater and land animals emerge.

Reptiles with swimming limbs with membranes. Most aquatic turtle species inhabit water bodies with little water movement. Mobile carnivorous reptiles, but there are also herbivorous species.

red-eared

The turtle is brown-green. Also called. It lives in shallow ponds in Mexico, South and Central America and Africa. The name was given because of the red spots in the area of ​​​​the ears, there are species with bright yellow spots. Rich green stripes are located on the head and paws. Juveniles are less intensely colored than mature ones. The carapace (upper part of the shell) of females is up to 30 cm, in males - up to 15 cm, there are claws. The diet of young individuals is dominated by animal food. Sedentary and non-conflict pets.

Trionix Chinese or Far Eastern

Turtles up to 20 cm in size with a soft leather shell. The nose is oblong in the form of a trunk. These three-toed inhabitants of Asian reservoirs are very mobile and aggressive. They can injure a person with sharp plates located on their jaws. To keep these predators and at home, they acquire a newborn individual. was included in the Red Book and banned for sale. Caught by smugglers and delivered to stores.

Caspian

Omnivorous turtles with a flat oval shell up to 30 cm in length. The color consists of alternating yellow and green stripes. Individuals like salty or fresh water with a temperature of 18-22 degrees and a large number of vegetation near the pond. They are found in Southern Europe and Central Asia. In nature, climb high into the mountains. Live for 30 years. In this species of freshwater turtle, sexual differences are clearly visible: the tail of males is more powerful and longer, the carapace is concave.

Silt bighead

Aquarium turtles with a small shell up to 18 cm and disproportionately big body. Having a harmless appearance, reptiles are able to injure with false teeth. They come from North and South America. They live in shallow streams and swamps with abundant vegetation. For keeping at home, a capacity of 60-100 liters is suitable. They eat animal food and dry food.

European marsh

Dark green turtles up to 35 cm. The body is covered with light spots. Large and long tail, webbed paws and sharp claws. Reptiles live near lakes and ponds. listed in the Red Book. Contained at an air temperature of about 30 degrees.

Types of small

According to scientific classification, small turtles are considered freshwater species, the average size of which does not exceed 13 cm. A terrarium with a capacity of 100 liters is suitable for pets.

Three-keel

Small reptiles up to 13 cm. Color from reddish-brown to black, carapace with three keels. Unpretentious in care, an aquarium up to 100 liters is suitable. They inhabit the countries of South Asia, in the forests they lead a completely land-based lifestyle. Omnivorous, eating fruits and vegetables, not averse to eating fish. In some countries banned for home keeping.

Musk

Turtles are so named because of the musk glands under their shells. The length of the oval carapace is 7–13 cm. There are light blotches on the dark head and carapace. Young turtles are distinguished by three longitudinal ridges on the carapace, which disappear over the years. They feed on molluscs, insects, small fish. Range: Canada to South America. In the natural environment, they are orderlies of the reservoir. Turtles swim well, the terrarium should have an island and a pond.

spotted

Amphibious pets up to 12 cm in length. Carapace black, without projections. Light yellow spots are evenly distributed on the shell, head and limbs. And also there are color variations with orange and reddish patches. They live at room temperature. For convenience, place shelters in a glass container, and aquatic plants in a pond. The turtle is diurnal. Type of food - insectivorous. Juveniles eat exclusively animal food. Plants are rarely eaten. In nature, they live in swampy and wet areas.

Pond Reeves

Turtle with a shell length of 13 cm. The carapace is painted in brown tones. There is an olive, gray-green and black body color, there are yellow stripes. Females are lighter than males, the tail is shorter. Temperature not lower than 22 degrees is allowed. Turtles are known to survive freezing temperatures.

Closing

Domestic turtles are endowed with a feature: in case of danger, the gap between the plastron and the carapace closes. The genus of closing consists of the following species:

1. reddish mud turtle;
2. silty red-cheeked;
3. silt yellowmouth;
4. musky ordinary;
5. musk keel.

flat

The carapace of these 9 cm turtles is slightly extended forward, has a slight bulge. Color from olive to brown depending on the breed. On the forelimbs there are scales and 4 or 5 fingers. The muzzle is oblong. Females are larger than males. Carnivorous species, eats fish, mice and shrimp.

Types of land

Central Asian

Popular pet species. At home, they grow up to 10-18 cm. Turtles have a light shell with dark shields, four-fingered limbs. Swimming is possible once a week. They do not like to be disturbed, they prefer peace and regularity. Provide the animals with 30 degree air and sandy soil in which they can dig.

Star or Indian

Beautiful pets with an unusual shell shape. The scutes are convex, slightly pointed with a catchy pattern in the form of stars. The shell is dark, the pattern is yellow. Turtles are medium in size, females reach 25 cm, males - 15 cm. The varieties that live in Sri Lanka and South India have 5-7 rays in color. Individuals from the north of India have 7–9 thin "star" rays. They eat plant foods.

mediterranean

The color and preferences in the content are different for subspecies. The color is monophonic or dark with yellow patches. On the front paws of domestic turtles, 5 fingers each, hind limbs with spurs. On the back of the thigh there is a tubercle of horny tissue. Sizes up to 35 cm.

Egyptian

The size of the shell reaches 12 cm, females are smaller than males. Sand color with black spots. The content is whimsical, susceptible to disease. Herbivorous, in nature they feed on plants of the genus Artemisia. Calcium and D3 are added to the diet. The opportunity to determine the sex of this species is provided at 15 years. They are kept in groups of their own species in a spacious tank.

Balkan

The size of the shell is up to 20 cm. In appearance, it resembles mediterranean tortoise. The shell is light brown with a dark pattern. Over the years, the color fades to a yellowish-gray. The tail has a horny tip. They feed on peas, beans, clover and fruits. Supplement the diet with slugs and snails. Mobile pets are especially active in the warm season.

Conclusion

Some species of domestic turtles are small and relatively unpretentious. Even for such animals, you will need a spacious and long aquaterrarium, an ultraviolet lamp and a water filter. Approach the content of the domestic turtle responsibly, and then it will delight you with the opportunity to observe it for a long time.

When choosing a pet, many think seriously about the turtle: harmless, hassle-free, original, not expensive. At first glance, care does not require much effort, and nutrition is not extravagance. Is it really? Is it really European bog turtle does not require attention and care?

Who is she, this representative of reptiles?

The description of this species, ancient in origin, should begin with the fact that Russia is the homeland, or rather, parts of its wetlands, of which there are so many around. Tropical and temperate climate, high humidity, warmth and peace - that's what it needs for life in nature.

Today we are talking about the domestication of individuals and even the possibility of taming them and the development of conditioned reflexes:

• recognition of the one who feeds,
• developing habits,
• reaction to the voice of the owner, and, possibly, to his smell,
• display of friendliness to people and other animals.

And all this is not a myth.

About the features of the structure

Paws, tail, head - as in the famous cartoon. Plus - reliable, strong protection for all this in the form of a shell. The European bog turtle is distinguished primarily by its brownish-olive shell (usually with yellow spots) with the number of rings, symbolizing its age, relatively long tail(up to 10 cm in adults), well-developed hind legs with strong claws. Paws and tail are the main organs that provide movement, including swimming. Between the fingers there are small membranes that allow you to row in water and swim faster than move on land.

The eyes of the male have a red tint, the female has a yellowish tint. The eyes are located on the sides of the head and directed downward.

The skin of the calf is strong, but vulnerable.

Character can be summed up in one word: predator. The need to independently obtain food for themselves in nature led to the presence of appropriate formations in individuals: teeth and claws, from which the one who cares can sometimes suffer. Moreover, such a girlfriend bites painfully, and after scratches, skin problems will remain for a long time.

The shell consists of a carapace (upper dark part) and a plastron (light bottom, popularly referred to as the abdomen). The bottom of the shell is yellowish, on which there may be one dark spot or several. This is a reliable shelter from enemies, a place of protection from drought, a way to relax "away from everyone."

What to feed?

The turtle eats a little and infrequently. Adults are generally recommended to be fed every other day or every three days. Young people, in whose body the processes of growth and development take place, need a daily meal. The predatory nature determines its need for meat, fish, mineral salts, and vitamins. However, plant foods are no less valuable, including fresh vegetables and herbs. It is a source of many irreplaceable biological substances.

To strengthen the shell, calcium is needed, which can be replenished by eating small fish whole with bones, or maybe as part of special synthetic feeds.

We need minced meat, ground fish components, bloodworms, insects, worms, squids, snails and similar biological structures. Animal protein required.

He will appreciate finely chopped young leaves of dandelion or clover, although he will not disdain aquarium vegetation. However, there is an opinion that it is better to feed plant foods to grown-up individuals.

She eats often, almost having time to swallow a lump of food lowered into the water before it pollutes the water. When eating, she tries to swallow everything quickly, which is why the possibility of stones getting into her intestines is not excluded.

How to create optimal conditions for life?

A high water level in the aquarium is not needed. Enough 10-15 cm (depending on the size of the individuals). The soil at the bottom can be anything, but not consist of pebbles that can be swallowed.

It is necessary to equip the exit from the water to a special platform located under an artificial lighting lamp. It is here that the European bog turtle will take air baths and bask under the warm rays.

The ultraviolet irradiator has a beneficial effect. Thanks to it, the absorption of calcium improves (for the strength of the shell) and the air is effectively warmed.

In general, the water temperature in the aquarium should not rise above 27 and fall below 23 o. But aeration is not so important, since the lungs of such inhabitants are filled with oxygen from atmospheric air.

The company also needs to pay attention. Some aquarists stop at the decision not to populate the turtle house with other inhabitants. The specifics of their living conditions are rarely favorable for big fish. However, those who like to experiment will like an ensemble in which a turtle with yellow spots against a background of bright green vegetation flirts with red swordtails.

About the features of reproduction

Starting from the month of May, these interesting inhabitants of the aquarium begin to reproduce offspring. Until July, the female produces up to three clutches of eggs, 5-12 pieces each. To do this, she uses small depressions in wet sand. The eggs are smooth, up to 3 cm in size and weighing within 8 g. After a period of 2-3 months, little turtles hatch, which feed on the contents of the yolk sac during their first winter and are in the ground.

But with the first rays of a confident spring sun, as soon as the air warms up to 22-23 o, the cubs go free and begin an independent life.

At home, you can try to recreate similar conditions by equipping a container with warm, moist soil on an artificial shore, or by planting a turtle while laying eggs in another aquarium. As the process is completed, independent and careful care of the laid eggs, their uniform heating, and prevention of drying out and damage are necessary.

An aquaterrarium is an original and fascinating home decoration. However, do not think that it exists independently. Beauty and well-being in it will provide proper care, accuracy and following the recommendations of experienced aquarists. Those who do not like constantly uprooted plants, floating on the surface, often muddy water and upside down artificial decorations, should not torture themselves.

Those for whom the marsh turtle has become a friend are sure that it will always respond to love, care and affection. And those moments when, at the approach of the owner or turning on the light, she stretches her head and turns towards her hand, will delight and amuse everyone around her.

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The European marsh turtle (lat. Emys orbicularis) is a very common species of aquatic turtle, which is often kept at home. They live throughout Europe, as well as in the Middle East and even in North Africa. We will tell you about its habitat in nature, the maintenance and care of the marsh turtle at home.

Habitat in nature

As already mentioned, the European marsh turtle lives in a wide range, covering not only Europe, but also Africa and Asia. Accordingly, it is not listed in the Red Book. She lives in various reservoirs: ponds, canals, swamps, streams, rivers, even large puddles. Bog turtles live in the water, but they love to bask very much and get out on stones, snags, various garbage to lie under the sun.

Even on cool and overcast days, they attempt to bask in the sun that breaks through the clouds. Like most aquatic turtles in nature, marsh turtles instantly flop into the water at the sight of a person or animal. Their powerful paws with long claws allow them to swim through thickets with ease and even burrow into muddy ground or under leaf layers. They love aquatic vegetation and hide in it at the slightest opportunity.

Description

The European bog turtle has an oval or rounded carapace, smooth, usually black or yellow-green in color. It is dotted with many small yellow or white spots, sometimes forming rays or lines. The carapace is smooth when wet and glistens in the sun, becoming more opaque as it dries. The head is large, slightly pointed, without a beak. The skin on the head is dark, often black, with small patches of yellow or white color. Paws are dark, also with light spots on them.

Emys orbicularis has several subspecies that differ in coloration, size, or detail, but most often in range. For example, the Sicilian marsh turtle (Emys (orbicularis) trinacris) with a catchy yellow-green carapace and the same skin color. And Emys orbicularis orbicularis living in Russia and Ukraine is almost completely black.

Adult marsh turtles reach a carapace size of up to 35 cm and a weight of up to 1.5 kg. Although, when kept at home, they are usually smaller, despite the fact that the subspecies living in Russia is one of the largest.

The European marsh turtle is very similar to the American marsh turtle (Emydoidea blandingii), appearance and habits. They were even assigned to the genus Emys for a long time. However, further study led to the fact that these two species were divided according to differences in the structure of the internal skeleton.

How long does a bog turtle live? There is no consensus on the lifespan of the marsh turtle. But, the fact that she is a long-liver, everyone agrees. The numbers range from 30-50 years to 100.

Availability

The bog turtle can be found commercially or caught in the wild during the warmer months. But, with normal maintenance, owners with zero experience in breeding turtles, offspring are successfully obtained. All individuals kept in captivity are unpretentious and easy to care for. However, it is important to note that in order to keep a bog turtle, you need to create fairly accurate conditions. And just to bring and put her in a basin will not work. If you caught a turtle in nature, and you only need it for fun, then leave it where you took it. Believe me, this way you will simplify your life and not destroy the animal.

Juvenile bog turtles should be kept indoors, while older ones can be released into home ponds for the summer. For 1-2 turtles, you need an aquarium with a volume of 100 liters or more, and as they grow, twice as much. For a couple of turtles, you need a 150cm x 60cm x 50cm aquarium, plus land for heating. Since they spend a lot of time in water, the larger the volume, the better.

However, it is important to keep the water clean and change it regularly, plus use a powerful filter. While eating, turtles litter a lot, and there is a lot of waste from it. All this instantly spoils the water, and dirty water leads to various diseases in aquatic turtles, from bacterial eye diseases to sepsis. To reduce pollution during feeding, the turtle can be planted in a separate container.

Decor and soil can be omitted, since the turtle does not particularly need it, and it is much more difficult to clean up with it in the aquarium.

Approximately ⅓ in the aquarium should be land, to which the turtle must have access. They regularly come out on land to bask, and so that they can do this without access to the sun, a heating lamp is placed above the land.

Heating

Natural sunlight is best, and small turtles should be exposed to sunlight during the summer months. However, this is not always possible and an analogue of sunlight must be created artificially. To do this, in the aquaterrarium, above the land, place an incandescent lamp and a special lamp with UV rays - an ultraviolet lamp for reptiles (10% UVB). Moreover, the height must be at least 20 cm so that the animal does not get burned. The temperature on land, under the lamp should be 30-32C, and the length of the daylight hours should be at least 12 hours. In nature, they hibernate, hibernate, but in captivity they do not do this and you do not need to force them! Home conditions quite allow her to be active throughout the year, this is not winter when there is nothing to eat.

Feeding

What to feed a marsh turtle? The main thing is not what, but how. While feeding, bog turtles are very aggressive! It feeds on fish, shrimps, beef heart, liver, chicken heart, frogs, worms, crickets, mice, artificial food, snails. The best food is fish, for example, you can run live fish, guppies directly into the aquarium. Juveniles are fed every day, and adult turtles are fed every two to three days. They are very hungry for food and overeat easily.

For normal development, turtles need vitamins and calcium. Usually artificial foods contain everything a turtle needs, so adding food from a pet store to the diet is not superfluous. And yes, they need sunlight to absorb calcium and produce vitamin B3. So do not forget about special lamps and heating.

Appeal

Very smart, they quickly understand that the owner feeds them and will rush to you in the hope of feeding. However, at this moment they are aggressive and you need to be careful. Like all turtles, they are treacherous and can bite, and quite painfully. They need to be handled with care and generally touched less often. It is better not to give to children, as they carry each other a mutual danger.
It is best to keep her alone! Bog turtles are aggressive towards each other and even gnaw their tails. And other aquatic species, for them either rivals or food, this also applies to fish.

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Care and maintenance of a marsh turtle at home

These reptiles are often kept as pets in their own homes. They can be easily bought or personally caught in their habitats, for which the warm summer months are very suitable.

Domestic marsh turtles are usually smaller in size than individuals living in wild nature. Their unpretentiousness allows any, even the most inexperienced owners, to keep them and even have offspring from their pets.

Marsh turtle at home unable to live fully without sunlight. That is why adult healthy individuals in a warm summer weather it is quite possible to let go for a walk in the yard of your own dacha, especially if there is a small artificial pond there.

These reptiles can be kept in pairs, but care behind marsh turtle assumes the presence of an aquarium with a volume of at least one hundred liters, as well as a place for heating, illuminated by an ultraviolet lamp that heats environment up to 30 ° C and providing animals with a twelve-hour daylight hours.

Living at home, marsh turtles do not hibernate, and pet owners should know this and not worry about this. To disadvantages marsh turtle keeping refers to its immense aggressiveness. Reptiles are pugnacious to such an extent that they are able to injure each other and even bite off their tails.

They are not friendlier to other pets, not tolerating rivals in the house, especially when it comes to the struggle for food. They are capable of being deceitful and can be, if careless, dangerous to small children. However, turtles are smart enough to reward those who feed them with gratitude.

Bog turtle nutrition

During feeding, turtles are very dirty, given this, it is best to put them in a separate container for the time of eating. In addition, these reptiles are extremely voracious and prone to overeating, so it should be borne in mind that adults need to be fed only after two days on the third, but young turtles need a daily meal.

What does a bog turtle eat? In nature, they feed on snails, mice, crickets, worms and frogs, centipedes and crustaceans, as well as insects, larvae and algae that can be found in the aquatic environment.

Turtles are quite warlike predators, capable of attacking even snakes, they also catch, eating, small lizards and chicks of waterfowl. What to feed marsh turtles if they are pets? It is possible for them to give chicken and beef heart and liver, to pamper a little shrimp.

Live fish of small sizes, such as guppies, are usually also released into the aquarium to feed the turtles. Feeding in the form of vitamins and calcium is simply necessary for such pets. In this sense, artificial feed containing everything you need is very convenient.

givotniymir.ru

Who is she, this representative of reptiles?

The description of this species, ancient in origin, should begin with the fact that Russia is the homeland, or rather, parts of its wetlands, of which there are so many around. Tropical and temperate climate, high humidity, warmth and peace - that's what it needs for life in nature.

Today we are talking about the domestication of individuals and even the possibility of taming them and the development of conditioned reflexes:

• recognition of the one who feeds,
• developing habits,
• reaction to the voice of the owner, and, possibly, to his smell,
• display of friendliness to people and other animals.

And all this is not a myth.

About the features of the structure

Paws, tail, head - as in the famous cartoon. Plus - reliable, strong protection for all this in the form of a shell. The European bog turtle is distinguished, first of all, by a brownish-olive shell (often with yellow spots) with a number of rings symbolizing its age, a relatively long tail (up to 10 cm in adults), well-developed hind legs with strong claws. Paws and tail are the main organs that provide movement, including swimming. Between the fingers there are small membranes that allow you to row in water and swim faster than move on land.

The eyes of the male have a red tint, the female has a yellowish tint. The eyes are located on the sides of the head and directed downward.

The skin of the calf is strong, but vulnerable.

Character can be summed up in one word: predator. The need to independently obtain food for themselves in nature led to the presence of appropriate formations in individuals: teeth and claws, from which the one who cares can sometimes suffer. Moreover, such a girlfriend bites painfully, and after scratches, skin problems will remain for a long time.

The shell consists of a carapace (upper dark part) and a plastron (light bottom, popularly referred to as the abdomen). The bottom of the shell is yellowish, on which there may be one dark spot or several. This is a reliable shelter from enemies, a place of protection from drought, a way to relax "away from everyone."

What to feed?

The turtle eats a little and infrequently. Adults are generally recommended to be fed every other day or every three days. Young people, in whose body the processes of growth and development take place, need a daily meal. The predatory nature determines its need for meat, fish, mineral salts, and vitamins. However, plant foods are no less valuable, including fresh vegetables and herbs. It is a source of many irreplaceable biological substances.

To strengthen the shell, calcium is needed, which can be replenished by eating small fish whole with bones, or maybe as part of special synthetic feeds.

We need minced meat, ground fish components, bloodworms, insects, worms, squids, snails and similar biological structures. Animal protein required.

He will appreciate finely chopped young leaves of dandelion or clover, although he will not disdain aquarium vegetation. However, there is an opinion that it is better to feed plant foods to grown-up individuals.

She eats often, almost having time to swallow a lump of food lowered into the water before it pollutes the water. When eating, she tries to swallow everything quickly, which is why the possibility of stones getting into her intestines is not excluded.

How to create optimal conditions for life?

A high water level in the aquarium is not needed. Enough 10-15 cm (depending on the size of the individuals). The soil at the bottom can be anything, but not consist of pebbles that can be swallowed.

It is necessary to equip the exit from the water to a special platform located under an artificial lighting lamp. It is here that the European bog turtle will take air baths and bask under the warm rays.

The ultraviolet irradiator has a beneficial effect. Thanks to it, the absorption of calcium improves (for the strength of the shell) and the air is effectively warmed.

In general, the water temperature in the aquarium should not rise above 27 and fall below 23 o. But aeration is not so important, since the lungs of such inhabitants are filled with oxygen from atmospheric air.

The company also needs to pay attention. Some aquarists stop at the decision not to populate the turtle house with other inhabitants. The specifics of their living conditions are rarely favorable for large fish. However, those who like to experiment will like an ensemble in which a turtle with yellow spots against a background of bright green vegetation flirts with red swordtails.

About the features of reproduction

Starting from the month of May, these interesting inhabitants of the aquarium begin to reproduce offspring. Until July, the female produces up to three clutches of eggs, 5-12 pieces each. To do this, she uses small depressions in wet sand. The eggs are smooth, up to 3 cm in size and weighing within 8 g. After a period of 2-3 months, little turtles hatch, which feed on the contents of the yolk sac during their first winter and are in the ground.

But with the first rays of a confident spring sun, as soon as the air warms up to 22-23 o, the cubs go free and begin an independent life.

At home, you can try to recreate similar conditions by equipping a container with warm, moist soil on an artificial shore, or by planting a turtle while laying eggs in another aquarium. As the process is completed, independent and careful care of the laid eggs, their uniform heating, and prevention of drying out and damage are necessary.

An aquaterrarium is an original and fascinating home decoration. However, do not think that it exists independently. Beauty and well-being in it will provide proper care, accuracy and following the recommendations of experienced aquarists. Those who do not like constantly uprooted plants, floating on the surface, often muddy water and upside down artificial decorations, should not torture themselves.

Those for whom the marsh turtle has become a friend are sure that it will always respond to love, care and affection. And those moments when, at the approach of the owner or turning on the light, she stretches her head and turns towards her hand, will delight and amuse everyone around her.

myaquas.ru

natural habitat

The population is quite common in the vastness of Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and quite numerous.

You can meet the beauty under the shell in freshwater reservoirs and on the banks of ponds, rivers, lakes, streams, and swamps. Sometimes a gutter or large puddles are suitable for temporary housing. Most of the time turtles stay in the water, but on bright days they like to bask in the sun. They arrange beds on coastal stone ledges, decaying garbage, old roots. They come out on land even in cloudy cool weather.

Differ in speed of reaction. At the sight of danger, they immediately hide under water in the depths. Shelter is chosen by algae, lily stalks, thickets of reeds, or a thick ball of silt. Muscular paws and long claws help to burrow into it. If necessary, heaps of leaves are used for a hiding place on the ground.

Appearance and behavior

Turtles of this species have an oval or round shape carapace. Adults of some subspecies reach 37 centimeters in length and weigh up to 1.6 kg. The body is black, rarely greenish-yellow. White or light yellow spots with blurred contours form a linear pattern. Color is a camouflage attribute. The matte shell, when wet, acquires a beautiful shine and smoothness. The head of a mature tortoise is pointed, without a beak-shaped elongation, proportionally large. Coloration, size and locality indicate a separate subspecies. This is due to the need for masking in the environment. The largest are representatives of the subspecies living in Eastern Europe.

Representatives of Emysorbicularis are very similar to their relatives from America - turtles Emydoideablandingii - habits and external data. For a long time, scientists considered them to be complete analogues. Studies have shown a difference in the placement of the bones of the skeleton, so each subspecies has taken its own separate niche in the scientific classification.

Life expectancy ranges from 35 to 100 years and depends on various factors and their combination. Even with ideal home keeping, turtles sometimes age and die earlier than usual. Growth also slows down a bit.

Why are European marsh turtles the most accessible and loved by zoologists?

Representatives of the marsh family can be easily found in any pet store and at affordable prices, or caught in their habitats throughout the spring and summer. Young turtles are resistant to the stresses associated with changes in conditions and beginners, who correctly and accurately organized the content, will soon be able to get offspring if they settle a female and a male together. But you need to understand that nothing comes easy. Put in a jar, play and forget will not work. It is better to immediately abandon the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bto settle a European turtle in the house.

Turtle care. Peculiarities. Difficulties.

It is important for every living being to have its own nook. For married couple turtles, they will become an aquarium, but not a terrarium, of a suitable size. Its volume must be at least one hundred liters. The third part of this structure is always land, as a place for heating and drying.

Related article: Why can't turtles be kept in the same tank as fish?

The first priority is the purity of the water. It is not so easy to carry out, given the number of liters and the fact that a lot of polluting waste remains during meals. Residents are not prone to cleanliness. Pathogenic putrefactive bacteria multiply and diseases of the eyes and skin develop. Seating for feeding in a separate container and frequent cleaning of the main shelter will help to solve the problem. To simplify the task, it is better to abandon unnecessary decoration of the bottom and underwater soil. Turtles have little need for such details. It is recommended to keep young animals constantly in an adapted room, adult grown-up representatives can be settled in artificial ponds on the street, if the air temperature allows.

How to arrange heating

Natural sunlight is not always available, although when possible, it is natural ultraviolet that should be used when raising cubs. Kids are periodically exposed to the sun so that they receive a dose of vitamin and warm up. In addition, a special lamp with the desired radiation is placed in the aquarium above the dry area. The mounting height is adjusted with age and size hobbies, but does not fall below 20 centimeters above the surface. The temperature regime is stopped at around 30°C and the duration of the glow is 12-14 hours.

Home conditions are more comfortable in this regard, so turtle activity remains at the same level regardless of the season. In satiety and warmth, natural hibernation is canceled.

How to feed

What to feed a marsh turtle? The diet of the marsh turtle is extended and includes fish and meat products. The turtle is omnivorous. A delicacy will be beef liver, pieces of hearts, snails, squids, worms, mice, insects. Artificial compound feeds are also an option. To maintain natural instincts, live fry or small fish are launched into the aquarium.

Plant food: lettuce, cabbage and dandelion leaves are recommended only for adults.

The youth are fed daily, controlling only the number, the older ones - after 2 days. It is necessary to ensure that they do not overeat, for greed is the main feature of their character.

Food must contain vitamins and more calcium, which is required by the shell. In pet stores, in special departments for reptiles, ready-made vitamins are sold in jars.

For a turtle, the very process of absorbing food is important, the process of processing and assimilation of which is not possible without light. Everything is interconnected, is in the same chain. Since the reptile eats only in water, before feeding it must be deposited in a separate basin with water, the temperature of which is +32 ° C. It is also necessary to plant out because to avoid contamination of the terrarium.

How to contact and communicate

Turtles are smart and understand who cares for them, feeds them. But the meal for them is a holy occupation, touching animals at this moment is risky. They respond with aggression, attack, bite very painfully. Cunning is another prominent feature, so you need to lift the turtle by the back of the shell. Communication with these reptiles must be multiplied by caution and accuracy. Restrict children's access to places of residence.

How often is it recommended to change the water in the aquarium and should the turtle be bathed?

Many people ask the question: “Is it worth bathing a turtle at all, because it spends most of its life in the water?”. "Do reptiles need a similar hygiene procedure?".

It is not always possible to change the water in the aquarium, since changing 100 liters at a time is not so easy. In view of the fact that it is impossible to maintain perfect cleanliness, dirt accumulates on the shell of a turtle. Therefore, it is necessary to bathe her.

As dirt accumulates, mechanical removal. For water procedures, pour into a basin warm water and rub the reptile's shell with a soft brush or cloth. Do not use hard objects, otherwise it will damage the shell - you can erase the keratinized coating of the pet.

Related article: How to wash a land tortoise?

How to keep a European tortoise? For normal life, you need to keep the turtle only in clean water. Water should be changed as it gets dirty. And since the turtle both feeds and defecates exactly in the place where it lives, there is a need for frequent changes of water. The owners of this issue should always be under control. If kept in mud, the turtle will develop diseases.

Water changes and a complete cleaning of the aquarium should be done once a month. You can only change the water more often. To do this, drain the water from the aquarium by 2/3 and add new water. It can be diluted with clean, settled tap water.

Do European tortoises need hibernation when kept at home?

Turtle lovers have long debated whether turtles need hibernation. Under natural living conditions, winter sleep is simply necessary for reptiles, as they are cold-blooded animals and cannot control their body temperature themselves. When the ambient temperature drops, the turtle slows down all processes and is forced to hibernate.

Related article: Hibernation of the red-eared tortoise.

Pets are kept in an aquarium with optimal temperature water, so in hibernation they dont need. Moreover, not every owner can prepare for hibernation and create appropriate conditions for them.

Who is in the house: male or female?

Gender can only be determined in adults. Males have a concave plastron and a long tail. All small turtles have long tails, so at this age it is not possible to determine the sex, and the length is not an indicator. With age, the length of the tail becomes shorter.

It is necessary to pay attention to the cloacal section near the tail. In the male, the opening of the cloaca is located further from the tail than in the female, and it has greater mobility, which plays a huge role during mating.

Walk outdoors and in the apartment

Turtles love to walk on the grass. But when choosing places for walking, it is advisable to avoid nearby water bodies. Although the turtle is not so agile, but if it gets into the water, it will not come back to you.

The turtle can be let out for a walk around the room, but you can’t lose sight of it. She can hide in hard-to-reach places. If the pet is hiding, you can turn off the light and wait a few minutes. Soon the turtle will make itself felt with its rustling.

It should be remembered - we are responsible for those who have been taught! When keeping a marsh turtle in captivity, you must follow the rules of care, otherwise you will not be able to avoid trouble. If any oddities are noticed in the behavior of the pet, you need to contact a specialist.

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Found not only in Europe. It can be found in Asia and Africa. natural environment its habitats are reservoirs: rivers, swamps, lakes, ponds, quiet backwaters. A prerequisite for the location of turtles should be the presence of open shores where they can bask in the sun. The design features of the body allow reptiles to easily swim in dense thickets, burrow into silt and leaves.

Description

The bog turtle is distinguished by an oval, perfectly smooth, streamlined carapace of black or yellow-green color. The neck, head and paws are dotted with small spots of white or yellow flowers.
The reptile has a large, sharp head, on the sides of which are eyes slightly lowered down. It has a relatively long tail, powerful, well-developed paws with sharp claws. The webbing between the fingers allows the animal to actively paddle the water and swim faster than move on land.

Despite the strong cover of the body, it is very easy to injure.

Young turtles must be kept at home - in an apartment, older individuals can be released into small suburban ponds and lakes in the summer. The content of the European marsh turtle at home implies the presence of a special terrarium or aquarium.

Aquaterrariums should be spacious (from 120 liters), conditionally divided into two parts - land for heating and water. Animals do not need a high water level, a depth of 15 to 20 cm is sufficient for them.

The terrarium for marsh turtles is additionally equipped with:

• artificial lighting lamp, which is installed above the land;
• UV irradiator for effective heating;
• water filter for water purification;

• bottom soil, similar to the natural bottom of the reservoir;
• edible plants.

Often, reptiles are kept in basins, under a battery, in boxes. With this lifestyle, irreversible processes (dehydration, breathing problems, lack of heat) take place in the animal’s body, as a result of which the pet becomes lethargic, apathetic, lifeless and slowly dies over several years.

Reptiles of this species are predators. However, they eat not only food of animal origin, but also "carrion", aquatic plants. The main diet should be proteins. You can diversify the menu with fish, shrimp, liver, dried or live worms. Do not exclude plant foods that act as vitamin supplements.
If you do not know what to feed your marsh turtle, then it is better to use ready-made balanced feeds containing all essential vitamins and trace elements that positively affect the general condition of the body. To preserve the reptile's natural instinct to hunt, it is recommended to run small live fish into the terrarium.

Do not forget that marsh turtles eat a little, given their age. Young need food every day, adults are fed 2-3 times a week. Animals are prone to overeating, so you should strictly monitor the amount of food consumed.

The bog turtle, which is kept at home, requires regular and thorough care. While eating food, the reptile litters a lot, which leads to rapid water pollution.
Dirty water is a favorable source for the reproduction of pathogenic bacteria and microorganisms that harm the health of the animal. To avoid rapid contamination of the water, turtles are planted for the duration of the meal.

Animals also need water procedures. Since dirt accumulates on the shell, it must be removed mechanically. For washing use warm water and a soft brush, which gently removes all dirt.

By nature, the European tortoise is aggressive, smart, quick-witted, cunning and even cunning. She understands the owners well, but at the time of eating food she is aggressive and can bite. The reptile loves loneliness, so it is best to keep it in solitude.
When keeping an animal at home, you need to know how the marsh turtle hibernates. With the onset of the first cold weather, the animal can hibernate, during which processes in vital organs are inhibited.

The domestic reptile does not feel the arrival of winter as keenly as its relatives living in nature, therefore it does not need winter sleep. When creating favorable conditions, including microclimate and clean water, a reptile throughout the year will delight with its activity.

The breeding season european turtles comes in the spring. Animals living in captivity have a greater chance of reproducing. They become sexually mature at the 6-8th year of life. A few days before laying eggs, the behavior of the female shows nervousness, anxiety, she seeks to get out of the terrarium, sits on the "land" and digs a hole.
During this period, it is necessary to create for the animal as close to natural conditions for masonry as possible: put a flat bath with sand or transplant the turtle into another aquarium with a 15-20 cm layer of soil. After laying eggs, they are carefully transferred to a special incubator, the temperature of which should be 28-30 degrees. Young reptiles will hatch after 10-12 weeks.

Failure to comply with comfortable living conditions can lead to the imminent death of a swamp reptile. The largest percentage of all animal diseases is associated with unsanitary conditions in the aquarium. Prolonged exposure to polluted water leads to the development of bacterial eye disease and further to sepsis.

Bog turtle diseases often occur due to a decrease in water temperature. With hypothermia, the animal can even get pneumonia or pneumonia. Vitamin D deficiency or vitamin A hypovitaminosis leads to malocclusion and, as a result, the formation of stomatitis and herpes.
The most common disease of captive reptiles is considered to be calcium deficiency, which occurs due to malnutrition or lack of UV radiation. An accurate diagnosis of a particular disease can only be established by a professional veterinarian.

How long a marsh turtle lives will depend on the conditions of its habitat, nutrition and microclimate inside the terrarium. On average, a reptile lives at home for 30-50 years. However, there are times when an animal outlives its owner for many years.

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The European marsh turtle is characterized by a dark olive or brown-brown oval shell (carapace) with divergent bright yellow dots or dashes, paws with sharp claws (5 fingers on the front and 4 on the hind legs) and moderately developed swimming membranes, long tail. The head, paws are decorated with yellow spots. The plastron is lighter, yellow to dark brown with black. The color of the shell can change as it grows and develops. Newborn turtles are almost completely black with a yellow rim around the edges of the plastron and carapace. As the turtles grow, they lighten and become covered with a bright yellow pattern, the plastron also turns yellow, and with age, the shell turns from brown-brown to dark olive. The length of the carapace reaches 18–25 cm (depending on the subspecies), males are usually smaller than females. In nature, they live up to 50 years.

Habitat

The European marsh turtle is common in areas temperate climate. Lives in Central and Southern Europe, America, Northwest Africa, Western Asia, Western Europe(Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania). In Russia, it is distributed in the warm temperate zone of the European part. The habitat extends from the Smolensk region along the border with Belarus, Ukraine to the south (Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Caspian lowland), in the upper and lower reaches of the Don, on the middle Volga and the left bank of the Ural River. Lives in slowly flowing rivers, ponds, lakes with a muddy bottom and gently sloping banks.

Protection measures

The species is listed in the Red Book International Union nature conservation (RL/nt), in the Red Data Book of the Republic of Bashkortostan, in position II of the Berne Convention. The European marsh turtle population is endangered. Recent studies show that the European bog turtle is beginning to be supplanted by another related species, the American bog turtle.

The main factors in the decline in the number of the species are the capture of turtles by fishermen, melioration, and urbanization. People find marsh turtles near water bodies or away from them. Most often, these are females looking for a favorable place for laying eggs in the mouths of rivers, and moving away from their habitat for several kilometers. People don't realize the damage they are doing to nature by taking a turtle home. Even the best conditions in captivity cannot replace natural ones. And often water turtles are kept in basins or even under a battery, behind a cabinet, etc. In this case, the animal slowly dies over several years. Irreversible pathological processes occur in the body of a turtle. For example, these are: dehydration (the turtle dries up, the skin begins to adhere to the bones, as a result of which the bones of the skull stand out on the head), atrophy of the swimming membranes, drying and death of the tip of the tail, overgrowth of the choanae, which can cause respiratory failure, respiratory diseases, lack of heat leads to various pathologies of the kidneys, serious gastrointestinal diseases.

conditions in captivity. General information.

Equipped aquaterrarium with the possibility of going ashore. Water temperature 24–26°С (optimally 25°С). The temperature on the shore should be at least 28–30°C, and therefore an incandescent lamp is installed above the shore to maintain the required temperature. The aquaterrarium must be equipped with a ReptiGlo 10.0 UV lamp. (Hagen) (10–12 hours a day) at a distance of 20–25 cm from the shore. The depth of the water is determined by the size and age of the turtles. For turtles under the age of one year - no more than 5 cm. After a year, the depth should be such that the turtle, standing on its hind legs vertically, can breathe freely. For adult healthy turtles, the water depth can be 30-40 cm with an aquarium volume of at least 100 liters, as this helps to strengthen muscles when swimming and brings them closer to natural habitat conditions. Large and medium stones that the animal could not swallow can be used as soil. Sand cannot be used as ground.(multithumb)

Important: It must be remembered that even the best home conditions cannot replace life in nature for turtles. The population of the European marsh turtle is constantly decreasing. Before you take responsibility and start a turtle, you should think about the fact that you are depriving the animal of a full life. Turtles found or caught in their habitat should be released into the wild near a body of water. Only sick or injured individuals need temporary care, which are released after treatment.

Features of behavior.

The bog turtle remains active during the daytime, sleeping at the bottom of the reservoir at night. On land under the rays of the sun spends several hours. It can move away from water bodies for several kilometers. The bog turtle is a fast swimmer, burrowing into the silt at the slightest danger, and moves quickly enough on land. In captivity, turtles quickly adapt to new conditions: they swim or sit on the bottom, periodically emerging for a breath of air every 15-20 minutes. Without air can be up to 2 hours without damage to health. During the period of minimal activity, the mechanism of anaerobic respiration is activated. For bog turtles in an aquaterrarium, it is desirable to provide a place that is darker in terms of illumination (under the shore, behind a grotto), where they could hide or sleep. Turtles are very fond of basking and sunbathing on the shore, stretching their hind legs.

Bog turtles can defend their territory. So, for example, if 2-3 turtles sit on the shore under a lamp, they somehow divide the territory among themselves. When trying to encroach on someone else's place, the turtle begins to defend its territory. It is expressed as follows: the turtle opens its mouth and stretches its head towards the offender, showing by its behavior “My place! Do you want to dispute?" Usually there are no conflicts between females, they get along quite peacefully together. Two males can be quite aggressive towards each other. However, it should be borne in mind that the behavior of each individual depends on individual characteristics. There are completely calm turtles that are friendly to neighbor turtles and people. Over time, they become almost tame, do not hide in a shell at all, are not afraid of people, stretch their heads when the breadwinner approaches, and respond to their name. However, there are also quite aggressive individuals whose behavior is difficult to predict.

Age determination.

The age of bog turtles, as in other species, is determined by the number of growth rings on the shell scutes. It should be taken into account that the first year or two of life, 1 ring appears within 3-6 months. After 2 years, 1 ring is equivalent to 1 year of life. Thus, if a turtle has 5-6 rings - it is about 2-3 years old, 6-7 rings - 3-4 years old, etc.

In nature, growth occurs much faster than at home. Therefore, by the thickness of the last (extreme) rings, it is easy to determine how many years the turtle has spent in captivity. In adult turtles (after 15-20 years), with a carapace size of at least 15 cm, the growth rings are smoothed out, the carapace and plastron become smooth.

Sex determination

Female:

1) smooth, flat plastron;

2) the iris is yellow, decorated with symmetrical black triangles radiating from the pupil in three directions;

3) thinner than the male, tail at the base, the opening of the cloaca is located close to the shell;

Male:

1) concave plastron;

2) the iris of the eyes is dark yellow or brown, the pupil is not surrounded by a pattern;

3) a tail thick at the base with an anus located 2-3 cm from the shell.

4) the upper “lip” is whitish (it does not always appear, there are completely black individuals, slightly decorated with yellow spots);

sexual behavior

Turtles become sexually mature at 6-8 years old with a shell length of 10-12 cm. Males actively flirt with females, sniff their paws, tail, stretch their nose to the muzzle. Often, males are quite aggressive, on land they run after females, in the water they sit on top of the shell of females, tightly clasping the edges of the carapace with their paws and begin to knock on the female's head with their nose. Such games of turtles often end in mating. Egg laying occurs in 1-2 months. During pregnancy, females need enhanced nutrition, enriched with protein, vitamins and calcium (calcium is required 2-3 times more than with normal nutrition). Since 2-3 months before laying, the turtle stops eating (which is the main sign of future laying), until this time, the female needs daily food and a higher temperature (2-3 degrees higher) of water and air for her digestion and assimilation of nutrients. Particular attention should be paid to the regime of ultraviolet light, without which the synthesis of vitamin D3 and calcium absorption is impossible. During pregnancy, it is desirable to keep the female separately from the male.

In nature, females lay 5-12 eggs from May to July. During the season, the female makes 1-3 clutches (usually in May, June and July). Bog turtle eggs are oval, covered with a hard shell, 28-33 mm long and 18-20 mm wide, weighing about 8 g. Female eggs are laid at night in previously dug holes 10-12 cm deep. 3 months from August to October. Young turtles spend the first winter in the ground, feeding on the yolk sac located on the ventral scutes of the plastron. They usually emerge from the ground only by the next spring, when the air temperature reaches 15-20?

At home, European bog turtles can also breed. A few days before laying, the females become restless, try to get out of the aquarium, often sit on the shore and dig the ground. At this time, it is necessary to take care of creating conditions for masonry. On the shore, you can put a cuvette with moistened sand, sphagnum or vermiculite (you can use a mixture of sand and vermiculite), where the turtle could lay its eggs. If the shore is small, you can put the female at night in a separate box with a 12-15 cm layer of soil. After laying eggs, they should be carefully placed in the incubator without turning over. The incubation temperature is 28-30?C at an optimum humidity of 80%. The duration of incubation depends on temperature and is 2-3 months.

Nutrition

In nature, food sources are fish, mollusks, frogs, insect larvae, wood lice, worms, aquatic and coastal plants.

In captivity, the main types of food are lean fish, shrimp, squid, earthworms. From plant foods, turtles can be offered lettuce, cabbage, dandelions, duckweed. Plant foods are eaten only by adult turtles.

As a source of vitamins, turtles are given fresh raw beef liver no more than 1 time per week.

Small-boned fish and snails can be a source of calcium in the natural diet.

As top dressing, additives containing vitamins and calcium, designed specifically for reptiles, are used. (Wardley Reptile Calcium and Wardley Reptile Multi-vitamins (Hartz), Reptocal, Reptosol (Tetra), Reptolife Powder).

Of dry foods, only Nutrafin (Hagen) or Reptomin (Tetra) for aquatic turtles can be given, which are the most balanced foods, enriched with substances necessary for growth and development. Continuous feeding with dry food is not recommended.

The bog turtle can only eat in water. When feeding, it is recommended to place the turtles in a separate bowl of water (the water temperature for better digestion of food should be slightly higher, about 32-34 C). When feeding in an aquarium, the water quickly becomes polluted and deteriorates.

Victoria Shuster.

© The article used photographs by Valentina Retskaya, Sergey Lipnik, Tatyana Zaitseva, Klimenty Semeno, Victoria Shuster.

turtle.info

External differences of the European marsh turtle

• The shell of this turtle is smooth, covered with small yellow dots and spots. The back is brown with small yellow spots. Larger yellow spots are located on the abdomen. They may also cover the head and legs. But sometimes this pronounced sign is absent;
• The skin is black, has numerous yellow spots of different sizes, sometimes merging with each other. Sometimes the skin becomes completely yellow. The location of these yellow spots has an irregular character, completely different in each animal, like fingerprints in humans;
• Eyes - the iris in females is pale yellow, while in males it has an orange or almost reddish tint;
• Size - there are sex differences in size associated with the physiology of reproduction, males are slightly smaller than females and have a concave lower part of the body (plastron), in the female it is rather flat. Also, females and males are characterized by differences in the size of the tail. Males have a much longer and more massive tail. The upper part of the carapace shell in both sexes is very similar, slightly convex, often richly covered with algae. The usual representative of this species has a carapace length of about 20 cm in females and 17 cm in males.

Eyelids are opaque, flexible. The tail is 1/3 of the length of the shell. The head can be retracted and hidden in the shell.

Lifestyle and behavior

The European bog turtle can live for over 120 years in the wild. These species of turtles spend most of their lives in close proximity to water bodies, only females come out to land and lay eggs. The turtle hunts in the water, it lives mainly in this environment. In the water, it moves smoothly, awkwardly and slowly.

Active during the day, lives in stagnant or slowly moving bodies of water with a muddy bottom (small, overgrown lakes, forest ponds, swamps, densely overgrown and hard-to-reach ponds, large rivers with dense vegetation).

She spends most of her time in the water, but breathes atmospheric air. Under water can be up to one hour. The animal is very shy and cautious, so it is difficult to meet it. IN quiet places loves to get out of the water and soak up the sun. The European tortoise with yellow spots over the body hibernates deep in the mud, at the bottom of water bodies for about 6-7 months (usually from October to March).

Males are very aggressive towards each other, especially during the mating season.

This species easily tolerates drought and is resistant to low temperatures; it loses its motor activity only at temperatures of 2-3 ° C.

Feeds on insects, snails, tadpoles, sometimes eats amphibians and fish. The main food for turtles is insect larvae, invertebrates and various amphibians, fish fry, sometimes they feed on carrion.

These animals feed around the clock, however, they are especially active at dusk and sometimes at night. They capture their prey with their jaws and tear with their claws. During the day on clear days, they rest and bask in the sun.

How do representatives of this species reproduce?

Turtles wake up from hibernation in early spring and become active in late March or early April, depending on the weather. The mating period takes place in the water and begins in April, as the animals are very resistant to low temperatures.

Shortly after awakening, individuals walk in the shallow parts of lakes and reservoirs. Mating is very expressive and active. There have been cases of mutilation during mating games.

After the mating season is over, the males remain in their former territories, and the females in late May and early June go on a hike to the nesting sites, where they will be for many years. Reservoirs located at a short distance from nesting sites are an excellent refuge for newly hatched cubs.

After completing their journey from breeding site to nesting site, females lay eggs. The female lays her eggs in July in a hole in the ground, which she digs with her hind legs. The eggs have thin shells, their dimensions reach 2x3 cm. One female has an average of 6 to 16 eggs (sometimes their number reaches 20).

Eggs do not remain in direct sunlight, but burrow into the ground to a depth of several centimeters, where, under favorable temperature conditions, they are incubated for about 100 days.

The most important for the proper development of the embryo are the high temperatures in June and July. Turtles in their eggs, like other reptiles, undergo a thermal sex determination process. So, on warm summer days, more females hatch, and on cold days, more males.

When temperatures are low, turtles are able to overwinter in their eggs until spring. If the summer is cool, then turtles do not hatch, this happens more often on the northern borders of the natural range of this species.

Under normal conditions, at the end of autumn, small tortoises 2.5 cm long, which have a soft shell, appear from the eggs. They emerge from their earthen burrows only in spring.

After the young turtles leave the nest, they head into the water. During this hike, the cubs are vulnerable to attacks from any terrestrial predators. Only after 10 years of life does their shell become so large and strong that turtles can feel relatively safe. Juveniles reach sexual maturity after about 7 years.

Depending on the weather conditions The spotted turtle is active from March or April to October. Turtles go into hibernation in autumn.

Bog turtles throughout Europe are under the protection of the state, have the status of absolute protection. Trapping and hunting them is strictly prohibited.

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Appearance and description

The European bog turtle has an oval, low and slightly convex carapace with a smooth surface and a movable connection to the lower carapace. Juveniles of this species are characterized by a rounded carapace with a weak median keel on the posterior rounded part.

On the limbs there are long and rather sharp claws, and between the fingers there are small membranes. The tail section is very long. An adult turtle has a tail up to a quarter meter long. It is the tail section that plays an important role when swimming, and serves, along with the hind limbs, as a kind of additional steering. The average length of an adult can vary between 12-38 cm with a body weight of one and a half kilograms.

The coloration of the shell of an adult tortoise, as a rule, is dark olive, brownish-brown or dark brown, almost black with small spots, strokes or dots of yellow. The plastron is dark brown or yellowish in color with blurry dark spots. The area of ​​the head, neck, legs and tail is also in dark colors, with a lot of yellow spots. The eyes have a very characteristic yellow, orange or reddish iris. A species feature is the smooth edges of the jaws and the complete absence of a "beak".

The European marsh turtle (Emys orbiсularis) belongs to the genus Bog turtles. This type of reptile Lately more and more often it starts up as an original and not too whimsical pet.

Appearance and description

The European bog turtle has an oval, low and slightly convex carapace with a smooth surface and a movable connection to the lower carapace. Juveniles of this species are characterized by a rounded carapace with a weak median keel on the posterior rounded part.

On the limbs there are long and rather sharp claws, and between the fingers there are small membranes. The tail section is very long. An adult turtle has a tail up to a quarter meter long. It is the tail section that plays an important role when swimming, and serves, along with the hind limbs, as a kind of additional steering. The average length of an adult can vary between 12-38 cm with a body weight of one and a half kilograms.

The coloration of the shell of an adult tortoise, as a rule, is dark olive, brownish-brown or dark brown, almost black with small spots, strokes or dots of yellow. The plastron is dark brown or yellowish in color with blurry dark spots. The area of ​​the head, neck, legs and tail is also in dark colors, with a lot of yellow spots. The eyes have a very characteristic yellow, orange or reddish iris. A species feature is the smooth edges of the jaws and the complete absence of a "beak".

Range and habitats

Marsh European turtles are widely distributed throughout the southern, as well as central and eastern parts of Europe, are found in the Caucasus and in most Asian countries. A significant population of this species has been noted in almost all countries that until recently belonged to the territory of the Soviet Union.

This is interesting! as show numerous studies, in the preglacial period in the European territory, this species was more widespread, and in some areas even today you can find relic residual populations.

Lifestyle and behavioral patterns

Bog turtles prefer to settle in the forest, steppe and forest-steppe zones, but they are also quite often found in fresh natural water bodies, represented by swamps, ponds, lakes, slow-flowing rivers and large water channels.

Optimal for life are flat natural reservoirs with gentle banks and very well warmed shallow areas with a sufficient amount of vegetation. Individuals are found even in mountain ranges.

This is interesting! Experimentally, it was proved that the marsh turtle in the aquatic environment at a temperature of 18 ° C is able to survive without air for almost two days.

During the period of mass reproduction, adult sexually mature turtles are able to leave the reservoir and move away from it at a distance of 300-500 m. The reptile can swim and dive perfectly, and can also for a long time spend under water, surfacing every quarter of an hour to the surface. Bog turtles belong to the category of semi-aquatic animals that are active during the daytime and bask in the sun for a long time. The turtle can feed throughout the day, and at night it goes to sleep at the bottom of a natural reservoir.

Lifespan

IN natural conditions several varieties of marsh turtles are common, which differ behavioral signs, diet and . The European marsh turtle is the most common species, but the life "resource" of such a reptile can vary significantly depending on habitat conditions and territorial features.

All individuals inhabiting central Europe are able to live up to fifty years, and turtles that live on the territory of Ukraine, as well as Belarus and our country, extremely rarely “step over” the line of forty years. In captivity, the marsh turtle, as a rule, lives no more than a quarter of a century.

At home, marsh turtles require competent care at all stages of growth and development. It is very important to choose the right aquarium, as well as provide the reptile with high-quality care and a complete, as balanced diet as possible. In order to decorate the underwater space, woody snags and artificial vegetation are most often used, which allows you to equip good underwater shelters that your pet needs for proper rest and night sleep.

Aquarium selection and characteristics

For a pair of adult European turtles, it is advisable to purchase an aquarium, the volume of which should exceed three hundred liters. The third part of such a design is always set aside for land, on which the indoor reptile can periodically warm up or rest. A pair of turtles will feel quite comfortable in an aquarium with dimensions of 150x60x50 cm.

The most optimal place for keeping a marsh turtle will be a small and well-fenced artificial reservoir in the local area. Such a garden pond should be under the direct rays of the sun for most of the day, which will ensure uniform and stable heating of the water. In a street reservoir, small places are necessarily equipped, as well as a platform for sunbathing by freshwater animals. The shoreline is usually used by turtles to lay their eggs, so it should be sandy.

In the southern regions of our country, depending on weather conditions, turtles can be placed in a garden pond from early spring and left there until late autumn, which will allow the animal's body to naturally prepare for the wintering period. The turtle should hibernate at a temperature of 4 ° C, so experts recommend arranging a turtle “wintering” inside a regular household refrigerator.

Care and hygiene

One of the most basic requirements for keeping a European bog turtle at home is the purity of the aquarium water. Such an amphibious pet does not differ in cleanliness, so all waste products and waste from feed quickly become main problem water purity.

Pathogenic and pathogenic putrefactive microflora multiplies very quickly, therefore, in the absence of quality care, it can cause the development of eye diseases or pathological changes in the skin. It is very important to install a powerful and highly efficient filter that has the highest possible volume and gentle flow.

Important! To facilitate the systematic cleaning of aquarium water and the entire structure, it is desirable to minimize the number of decorations on the bottom and reduce the volume of underwater soil.

What to feed a marsh turtle

Under natural conditions, marsh turtles belong to the category of omnivorous amphibians, but various small invertebrates, represented by mollusks, worms and various crustaceans, most often become the basis of the diet.

Very often, turtle prey is underwater or terrestrial insects, as well as their larvae.. Larvae of such insects as dragonflies, swimmers, mosquitoes, wood lice and beetles are eaten in huge quantities. There are also known cases of eating marsh turtles young snakes or chicks of waterfowl, as well as any carrion.

At home, despite the omnivorous and unpretentious nature, the issue of feeding the marsh turtle must be approached very carefully. The main diet must include:

• meat of low-fat varieties of fish, including haddock, cod, perch and saithe;
• liver components, including chicken or beef liver and heart;
• crustaceans and arthropods, including daphnia, worms and beetles;
• all kinds of marine life;
• small mammals and amphibians.

A prerequisite for good nutrition is the addition of dry and vegetable food to the diet, which can be represented by vegetables and fruits, herbs, aquatic vegetation, as well as special food for water turtles.

This is interesting! Young growing specimens and pregnant females are fed once a day, and the diet of adults involves feeding only three times a week.

Health, disease and prevention

Freshwater species of turtles rarely get sick in conditions of proper maintenance, and have good innate immunity.

However, the owner of such a pet may face the following problems:

With improper arrangement of the aquarium, injuries and various damage to the skin of the animal are not ruled out.

This is interesting! Most often, inexperienced or novice owners of a marsh turtle make various significant errors in care, which cause deformation of the shell. As a rule, such a phenomenon is the result of an acute lack of vitamin complexes and calcium at the stage of maturation or active growth of the turtle.

Reproduction of the European marsh turtle

Males, unlike females, have a longer and thicker tail, as well as a slightly concave plastron. Egg laying is carried out in holes on the sandy shore, in close proximity to the reservoir.

The laid elliptical eggs are buried by the female. Newborn turtles have an almost black coloration and a very slightly pronounced yellow pattern. Feeding young animals throughout winter period carried out due to a fairly large yolk sac located on the abdomen.

All turtles are characterized by temperature determination of the sex of all offspring, therefore, with an incubation temperature of 30 ° C or more, only females hatch from eggs, and at low temperatures, only males.

Intermediate temperatures cause the birth of cubs of both sexes.

Hibernation

The average duration of the main active period directly depends on many factors, the main of which is climatic conditions. In our country, marsh turtles come out of hibernation around April or the first decade of May, after the air temperature reaches 6-14°C and the water temperature reaches 5-10°C. The wintering period begins in the last decade of October or early November. Winter hibernation occurs in the conditions of the muddy bottom of the reservoir. In home keeping, the reptile fully retains its activity in winter.

Buy marsh turtle, price

European marsh turtles, due to their original appearance, fairly wide distribution and relative unpretentiousness in home maintenance, in last years are increasingly becoming a decoration of aquariums for lovers of such exotic pets. Among other things, connoisseurs of amphibians are captivated by the quite affordable cost of such a pet. average price one young individual, regardless of gender, is about one and a half thousand rubles.

Almost oval low carapace (carapace), if you look at it from above, you can see that in the back the width is slightly wider than in the front. Carapace length of 20 cm or more in adult large turtles. Since the key habitat of turtles has always been water, naturally carapace shields fit perfectly to each other. In their structure, the carapace and plastron are completely streamlined and do not have any protrusions. Large claws are located on the legs, small membranes are located between the fingers. The claws of the bog turtle can easily tear apart prey and can significantly scratch your hand. The tail of this turtle is relatively long, it can reach 3/4 of the length of the shell (about 12 cm) and at the time of swimming it takes part as an auxiliary steering wheel on any turns (the main taxiing is carried out by the legs) and as a counterweight holding the turtle in the required position during maneuvers. The carapace usually has a dark olive, dark green, sometimes almost black color, the plastron is light, yellowish. The shell, neck, head, legs are covered with small light spots. Often, females have yellow eyes, while males have slightly reddish eyes. Females have slightly shorter tails than males.

The territory of Russia: from the Smolensk region on the border with Belarus and Ukraine in the south, on the Caspian lowland, on the middle Volga, in the upper and lower reaches of the Don, in the Caucasus. Belarus, the left bank of the Ural River, Lithuania, Northwest Africa, Southern and Central Europe, Northern Iran, Turkey, the Urals, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia. They live in swampy places, ponds, lakes, and in addition they can often be found in quiet river backwaters with a gentle coast and a muddy bottom, however, under a number of conditions: there must be open places on the coast where they can bask in the sun for a long time.

Young every day, adults 2-3 times a week. The amount of food must be selected personally, depending on how much food the turtle eats. As a rule, the amount of food is 2-3 pieces of 1 cm3 for babies, 2-3 pieces of 2-3 cm3 for older individuals. The food must be kept moist and at room temperature. The main food for turtles is fish. It is preferable to only feed live small fish, which can be immediately launched into the aquarium.

Types of food

Fish (not very fatty and of all kinds - thalass, cod, hake, gobies, etc.), meat (in particular internal organs: chicken heart, beef liver, beef heart, but not chicken), crustaceans and insects in the form of an infrequent treat (bloodworm, daphnia crustaceans, gammarus, earthworms, beetles, wood lice, legless locusts), others (small freshwater snails, squids, tadpoles, shrimps, frogs).

Turtles are required to receive vitamins and mineral supplements in food. For these purposes, the food is supplemented with calcium containing subcrusts and vitamins (Wardley and other companies), or they are given a varied and complete food (fish with internal organs and bones). With an accurate diet, auxiliary calcination is not required. In addition, it is preferable to place a mineral neutralizing block in the aquarium.

Since marsh turtles are predators, their mental abilities are much greater than those of land turtles, and they learn easily and simply. It is allowed to try to teach the turtle to take food with tweezers: they willingly do this both by stretching their heads from the water and on the shore. It is also interesting that, having grabbed food outside the water, the turtle goes to swallow it into the pond, but still, with this food, the water most often remains clean. Soon, when the owner appears, a conditioned reflex will be provoked: the turtles will harmoniously stick their heads out of the water. In addition, they are tamed at a certain feeding time and will be able to recognize the owner.

reproduction

Spring is the time for marriage. During this period, turtles (age 6–8 years and shell 9–12 cm) are far from water bodies. Turtles can also mate in water. Sperm of turtles can be stored in the ways of the female up to 1 year or more, as a result of this, a female caught in nature can "personally" lay absolutely full-fledged eggs in 5-6 months. Between May and July, females lay their eggs three times in holes dug in the ground. During the season, the female produces 1-3 clutches. The depth of the pits is about 10 cm. The eggs that fall into them are beautiful: their shells are snow-white, they themselves are oblong, correct form, size 30 x 20 millimeters, weight about 8 g. In any clutch there are about 5–10 eggs, and the female buries them in the most thorough way. From these eggs, after about 2-3 months, tiny turtles are obtained, about 24-25 millimeters long, weighing 5 g, with a large yolk sac on the belly. The shell of young turtles is usually dark brown with yellow lines. Near the nest, they dig not very large passages, where they spend the winter in most cases. In the spring, turtles crawl out of their shelters to the surface of the earth and begin an independent life. The incubation temperature is about 25–30°С and the duration is 54–90 days. Incubation humidity 90%. The water depth for newly born turtles is about 5 cm. Young individuals feed on daphnia and insect larvae.

The terrarium must be sufficiently free (120-150l, 120l is at least 1 individual), which consists of two halves - water and land, between them there must be a ladder. It is preferable to have a pond up to 10 cm deep for small specimens, for large specimens 15–20 cm. An ultraviolet lamp and an incandescent heating lamp for reptiles (10% UVB) are placed above the dry part of the territory at a height of at least 20 cm. There must be a water filter and a heater water (a heater, however, is not required if the water temperature does not drop below 24-26 degrees, in fact it should be like that). in hibernation, but at home at a temperature of 22–25 ° C, this fact does not happen.

In order not to pollute the water, the turtle is transplanted into a basin or a bathroom and fed there, and then put back into the aquarium.

Additional Information

Scientists distinguish 13 subspecies of the marsh turtle in nature, and only 5 are found on the territory of Russia. In summer, turtles live near water bodies and, if an enemy appears, they rush into the water and dive to the bottom, often burrow into the silt. Marsh turtles hibernate in autumn, in October, thereby waiting out the winter at the bottom of reservoirs.

Adults and large individuals can be hostile at times and try to bite. It is necessary to take them by the edge of the back of the shell, since the head on a long neck has great physical activity. The bite can be very painful, as the turtle seizes the soft part of the hand with its mouth, convulsively clenching its jaws several times. However, if this animal is treated well, they are instantly tamed, stop hiding their head under the shell, and vice versa, pull it towards the owner-breadwinner.

Major diseases

Fungal skin lesions, pneumonia, septicemia.

Bog turtles began to be delivered to central Europe in the Middle Ages, then they were eaten during the fasting period, traders brought them from Italy.

Characteristics of this species

The European marsh turtle is characterized by a brown or dark olive oval shell (carapace) with diverging dashes or bright yellow dots, paws with sharp claws (4 claws on the hind legs and 5 on the front) and medium-developed swimming membranes, a long tail . The head and paws are decorated with yellow spots. The plastron is lighter in color, ranging from yellow to dark brown with black. The color of the shell has the ability to change as it grows and develops. Newborn turtles are almost entirely black with a yellow rim along the edges of the plastron and carapace. Turtles lighten with age and become covered with a bright yellow pattern, the plastron also turns yellow, and the brown-brown shell becomes dark olive. Depending on the subspecies, the length of the shell reaches 18–25 cm, and males are usually smaller than females. In nature, they live up to 120 years.

Habitat

The European marsh turtle is common in temperate climates. Lives in Central and Southern Europe, Western Asia, America, Western Europe (Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania), North-West Africa. In Russia, it is distributed in the warm temperate zone of the European part. The habitat ranges from the Smolensk region at the border with Belarus, Ukraine to the south (Caucasus, Caspian lowland, Transcaucasia), in the middle Volga, in the upper and lower reaches of the Don and the left bank of the Ural River. The turtle lives on slowly flowing rivers, ponds, lakes with gentle banks and a muddy bottom.

Protective Measures

This species is listed in the Red Book of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (RL / nt), in position II of the Berne Convention, in the Red Book of the Republic of Bashkortostan. The population of this turtle species is in danger of extinction. Recent studies show that it is being superseded by a related species, the American bog turtle.

The main reasons for the decrease in the number of the species are fishermen, land reclamation, and urbanization. A person finds marsh turtles near water bodies or far from them. Most often, these are females looking for a good place to lay eggs in the mouths of rivers, and moving away from their usual habitat for a number of kilometers. People don't realize the damage they're doing to nature when they take a turtle home. Including the most good conditions in captivity can never replace natural ones. And very often turtles are kept in basins or, by and large, behind a cabinet, under a battery, etc. With this treatment, the animal slowly dies over many years. In the body of a turtle, irreversible pathological processes are taking place. For example: dehydration (the turtle dries up, the bones of the skull stand out on the head, the epidermis begins to adhere to the bones), loss of swimming membranes, overgrowth of the choanae, which can cause respiratory pathology, respiratory diseases, lack of heat leads to serious gastrointestinal diseases, various pathologies of the kidneys, drying and loss of the tip of the tail.

Conditions at home

Equipped terrarium with access to the beach. The water temperature is 24–26°С (25°С is acceptable). desired temperature. A ReptiGlo 10.0 UV lamp must be installed in the aquaterrarium. (Hagen) (10–12 hours a day) at a distance of 20–25 cm from the shore. The depth of the water is determined by the age and size of the turtles. For turtles under the age of one year - no more than 5 cm. After a year, the depth must be such that the turtle, having risen vertically on its hind legs, has the opportunity to breathe freely. For adult healthy turtles, the water depth can be 30-40 cm with an aquarium size of at least 100 liters, as this helps to strengthen muscles when swimming and brings them closer to natural habitat conditions. It is allowed to use medium and large stones as soil, but only such that the animal could never swallow them. It is forbidden to use sand as soil. It must be remembered that even the best home conditions will never be able to replace the existence of turtles in natural conditions. The turtle population is steadily declining. Before committing to owning a turtle, you need to consider that you are depriving the animal of a full life. Turtles found or caught in their habitat must be released near the reservoir. Only sick or injured individuals need temporary care, they must be released after treatment.

Behavioral features

The bog turtle sleeps at the bottom of the reservoir at night, and remains active during the daytime. It spends several hours under the rays of the sun on land. Can be removed for several kilometers from water bodies. The bog turtle swims very fast, burrows into the silt with even a meager threat, and moves quite rapidly on the ground. In captivity, turtles instantly adapt to new circumstances: they swim or sit on the bottom, emerging from time to time (every 15-20 minutes) for a breath of air. However, they can stay without air for up to 2 hours without compromising well-being. During minimal activity, they turn on the mechanism of anaerobic respiration. For marsh turtles in an aquaterrarium, it would be good to create conditions so that there is a dark place (under the shore, behind a grotto), where they can hide or take a nap. Turtles love to bask or sunbathe on the shore, stretching their hind legs.

Bog turtles often defend their area. So, for example, if 2-3 turtles sit on the shore under the lamp, they will definitely divide the territory among themselves. If there is an attempt to encroach on its place, then the turtle proceeds to protect its territory. It manifests itself in this way: the turtle opens its mouth and stretches its head towards the offender, demonstrating by its own behavior “My place! Would you like to object?" As a rule, conflicts never arise between females, they absolutely calmly get along together. But two males can be quite hostile in relation to each other. For this, it is necessary to take into account that the actions of any individual depend on personal characteristics. There are absolutely serene turtles that show affection for neighbor turtles and people. These turtles in the future become actually tamed, absolutely do not hide in a shell, are not afraid of people, pull their heads when the owner-breadwinner approaches, and respond to their own name. However, there are also quite hostile individuals, whose actions are not easy to predict.

Age determination

The age of bog turtles, like other species, is determined by the number of growth rings on the shell scutes. It should be taken into account that in the first or second year of life, 1 ring occurs within 3-6 months. After two years, one ring is equal to one year of existence.

In nature, growth occurs much faster than with domestic maintenance. As a result, it is easy and simple to determine how many years the turtle spent in captivity by the thickness of the last (extreme) rings.

sexual behavior

Turtles become sexually mature at about 6-8 years old, with a shell length of 10-12 cm. Males flirt dynamically with females, sniff their tail, paws, stretch their nose to the muzzle. Often, males are quite aggressive, chasing females on land, then sit down on top of the female's shell, strongly clasping the edges of the shell with their paws and begin to knock on the female's head with their nose. Such fun turtles often end in mating. In females, oviposition occurs after about 1-2 months. During pregnancy, females need enhanced nutrition, which should be enriched with vitamins, protein and calcium. Pay special attention that calcium needs 2-3 times more than when ordinary food. The female stops taking food 2-3 months before laying (the main sign of the upcoming laying), until this time, the female needs daily food and a higher temperature (2-3 degrees more) of water and air to assimilate and digest the necessary substances. Particular attention should be paid to the mode of ultraviolet illumination, without which it is simply impossible to absorb calcium and synthesize vitamin D3. During pregnancy, the female is preferably kept separately from the male.

reproduction

Under natural conditions, female turtles lay about 5-12 eggs between May and July. During this time, the female carries out 1-3 clutches (usually in May, June and July). Marsh turtle eggs are oval, covered with a hard shell, about 28-33 millimeters long and about 18-20 millimeters wide, weighing about 8 g. Females lay their eggs at night in originally dug holes about 10-12 cm deep. millimeters hatch after 2-3 months between August and October. They spend the first winter in the ground, feeding on the yolk sac located in the abdominal scutes of the plastron. They appear from the ground, as a rule, only by the next spring, if the air temperature reaches 15-20C.

European marsh turtles kept in captivity have every chance to breed. A couple of days before laying, the females become restless, try to get out of the aquarium, often sit on the shore and dig the ground. During this period, you need to worry about creating ideal conditions for masonry. On the shore it is allowed to put a cuvette with wet sphagnum, sand or vermiculite (you can use a mixture of vermiculite and sand), where the turtle could lay its eggs. If the coast is small, you can transplant the female into a separate box for the night with a 12-15 cm layer of soil. After the eggs have been laid, they must be carefully placed in the incubator without turning over. The incubation temperature is 28-30C at an optimal moisture level of 80%. The duration of incubation depends on temperature and is approximately 2-3 months.

Nutrition

IN nature the main food sources are small frogs, fish, wood lice, insect larvae, worms, mollusks, coastal and aquatic plants.

In captivity, the main types of food are squid, shrimp, earthworms, lean fish. Recommend from plant foods can be lettuce, dandelions, cabbage, duckweed. Plant foods are eaten only by adult turtles.

The source of calcium in the natural diet can be snails or fish with small bones.

As supplements, additives are used that contain calcium and vitamins in their composition, which are designed only for reptiles. Of dry foods, only Reptomin (Tetra) or Nutrafin (Hagen) for aquatic turtles are allowed, which are more balanced foods enriched with substances necessary for growth and formation. Permanent dry food is not recommended.

The bog turtle can only eat in the water. When feeding, it is recommended that turtles be transplanted into a separate bowl of water (the water temperature should be slightly higher than 32-34 C for the best digestion of food). When feeding in an aquarium, the water is instantly polluted and deteriorates.

European Marsh Turtle — Video